Imagine you are walking down the street. The wheels of a skateboard scrape and slice the asphalt. You turn, expecting the cliché: long hair, baggy jeans, west coast-bred guy. But instead, an electric, diverse group of women appear. They are loud and unapologetic, eager to invite you into possibility.
As skate culture has simultaneously grown alongside a society obsessed with results, the ethos of the sport has redirected its focus to metrics and competition, limiting its casualness. Beyond the caricatures, there are people taking a step back from this expectation of results and redefining the physical and spiritual side of skating. For so long the practice of skateboarding has been dominated by men and only seen as a performance-based activity, but GrlSwirl, a women’s skating collective, is holding the board with firm grip, eager to carve their own path.
I had the pleasure of speaking with co-founder and Chief of Global Community/Partnerships Kelsey Harkin. She answered the Zoom call as she was walking into her sun-soaked home in Portugal. Her effortless charm was accompanied by a kind smile, making the interview feel like I was catching up with a friend over coffee. This instant connection seems to be mirrored throughout the success of Harkin’s partnership with fellow GrlSwirl co-founder and CEO Lucy Osinski. The pair met in 2018 after Osinski complimented Harkin’s pants in a routine stroll down Venice Beach. This simple act of kindness led to Harkin, Osinski, and a few other women meeting up to skate on a Tuesday night in February.
“None of us were good at skating,” jokes Harkin. “We just liked to skate. We were all just kick pushing around on the boardwalk and we had so much fun that we would meet every week. We felt so comfortable and safe in this space that we wanted to invite other people in to experience what we had experienced.”
The small group of 10 women gained attention fast. Women from all walks of life joined in, supported by a welcoming Venice community. This idea of a space where women could just come as they are and not be judged was an attractive force. The streets and skateparks of Venice were filled with women hungry for fun and authenticity. It seemed as if everyone was looking for an excuse to be silly and try something new. The male-dominated skate parks of Venice were evolving into a place where everyone was welcome, no matter gender or experience.
“We have this mentality like come as you are, you don’t need to fit into a certain mold to be a skater,” says Harkin.
Emma Houlihan, a 23-year-old recent graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, is one of the many young women inspired by GrlSwirl. Growing up with brothers in Massachusetts, Houlihan was intrigued by the world of skating. While it was always there, she was reluctant to join in as it never seemed like an option for a young girl. After the world opened back up following quarantine in 2020, an after-school skateboarding program started at her high school. Seeing women of all skill levels rip tricks and skate down roads on GrlSwirl’s Instagram, Houlihan jumped on the opportunity.
Photo Credit:
Emma Houlihan
Through a mentorship with her photography teacher, a sponsored skateboarder, Houlihan received a confidence boost and instantly fell in love. Since starting her skating journey, she began connecting with GrlSwirl and felt the impact of their ingenuity.
“Having such strong female role models and not asking for permission to show up changed my direction in life. I noticed a huge change in my confidence and willingness. Seeing people shine in their element gives myself permission to do just that.”
After getting on campus, Houlihan became an active member of Skate Club UCLA. At first, she was one of a few girls and felt that something was missing. Like the origins of GrlSwirl, Houlihan would track down any girl on a skateboard, offer to teach lessons, and spread the word. Eventually she increased membership up to 150 women and became president.
Houlihan attributes her leadership success within the club and her own personal brand to the influence of GrlSwirl. With over eight thousand followers on instagram, you can find videos of her doing a sick trick in a flowy skirt or falling hard and getting up with a smile. With inspirations from skaters like Andy Anderson or the Skate Like a Girl organization, Houlihan is tapping into her creativity and wants to bring authenticity to skating.
“When I first started skating, I used to make myself so small as I felt like I didn’t belong,” details Houlihan. “But now I want to take up more space. I love being able to dress feminine and skate as they can totally coexist. I want to be genuine and vulnerable. Skate has been so male-dominated and now we are ready to break that mold.”
She has been inspired by GrlSwirl to motivate the next generation of skaters. Through individual skating lessons, Houlihan wants to teach her students lessons that are both applicable to skating and life.
“Going through college and life can be frustrating and you face a lot of new experiences,” says Houlihan. “But skateboarding gave me so much community and was always a constant through the hard times. I want to be able to give back what skateboarding has taught me. I have gained so much confidence, control, and empowerment.”
Houlihan continues to touch on how she wants to work alongside brands like GrlSwirl to undo the rhetoric surrounding what it means to be a woman. Both Harkin and Houlihan emphasized their commitment to creating a skating culture that embraces vulnerability. They want to disband the mentality that there are barriers, because in the end there aren’t. GrlSwirl is inspiring a new generation of skaters, like Houlihan, and want to get everyone on a board.
To achieve this, Harkin and Osinski are working to make GrlSwirl global. Initially, they were on the fence about releasing GrlSwirl to the world, scared the morals and values would get messed up in the wrong hands. But after connecting with Kristen Miller, a friend from New York City, Harkin was confident in GrlSwirl’s ability to grow. GrlSwirl now spans 10 chapters worldwide, from San Diego to Paris to Okinawa. At the end of this coming January, a new chapter will open in Austin, Texas.
The chapters are run by volunteer leaders who organize free group skates for their community twice a month. Four times a year the leaders host a skate mentorship which is geared towards young girls and underserved communities. With daily requests to open a chapter in other cities, Harkin is very intentional in her choosing locations. Through high expectations of commitment to community and strict ethos, the founders are slow to expand. Having watched companies collapse by chasing quantity over quality, Harkin and Osinski are letting GrlSwirl test the waters before diving in.
To put that philosophy into practice, from fall of 2024 to the spring of 2025, they toured 16 cities in 8 weeks, bringing GrlSwirl to everyone. The tour “World’s Okayest Skater Tour” was powered by Electrolit. From Bangkok to Boston, the team of GrlSwirl traveled wide and far. They hosted a group skate in every city, attracting from 100 to 200 people every time. In partnership with their non-profit, Swirl Skate Foundation, the team’s passion for social impact was relevant as they were able to fulfill their mission of getting people around the world skating.
At the end of 2026, GrlSwirl will continue their tour, working with diverse communities. This touches on their value of making skateboarding accessible to everyone. They hope to not just teach girls and women to skate, but to teach them the life skills that come along with it.
Through the accessibility of GrlSwirl and deep community involvement, they are consistent with their origins. Even with a strong social media presence, Osinski, CEO and the social media manager, builds their brand on the strength of their community impact. Everything is unfiltered, undeniably contagious, and very stylish.
Both Houlihan and Harkin agreed that anyone can be a skater. The beauty of a collective like GrlSwirl is that it allows people to show up, and when they show up it is always for themselves. GrlSwirl is empowering girls, students, mothers, and more to get on the board and have fun. In a world dominated by conflict, it is these simple acts that will maintain hope and timeless joy.
“I think that the future of skating is just universal, and more and more people are realizing that it’s a lifestyle and you don’t have to be an Olympic skater,” says Harkin. “You don’t have to be Tony Hawk. You can just be you and enjoy skateboarding.”
